Manuscript Accelerator

A 6-month, no-excuses plan for writing or revising a book.

Writing a book is hardbut that doesn't mean ithas to be frustrating.

Instead of struggling in solitude, grabbing at quick-fix offers, or hoping for a miracle, you can have a clear path to success. It looks like this:

We'll hand-pick one of our book coaches to guide your project from wherever you are to "the end."

Whether you are stuck after a few chapters, or stuck with a whole draft that you know isn't working, we'll make a customized plan to help you finish or revise your draft.

It's part project management, part editorial guidance, part magic voodoo that comes from pairing our own highly trained book-loving coaches with writers who are ready to stop messing around.

That may not sound sexy, but if you’re reading this, our guess is you’re tired of the empty promises, the “write as fast as you can” programs, and the “invitations” to sit in a room with a famous author that have gotten you exactly nowhere.

This is going to be different.

It's a method, not a miracle

Manuscript Accelerator gives you the three essential elements you need for creative success

Accountability so you can't make excuses

You’ll be reaching for your laptop instead of the remote control when you have a book coach waiting for your work.

Focus so you don't get off track

Professional, detailed feedback as you go means you won’t waste hours, days, or years of your life on a story that doesn’t work.

Support where it counts the most

No more despairing about whether your work is any good. Your book coach is there to support you, so you can spend less time doubting yourself and more time writing forward.

After six months of working together, book coach Lizette Clarke meets her writer Lorrie Tom for the first time.

Manuscript Accelerator is designed towork with your schedule and your life

You commit to finishing a rough draft or a revision of your manuscript in 6 months*.

You work with your book coach on a project plan that takes into account your work and family obligations, your vacation plans, and your writing style.

You agree on a deadline schedule — usually every week or every other week.

You can email your coach between deadlines with quick questions, fast brainstorms, and support in moments of doubt.

You can schedule phone or video-conference calls with your coach to go over things face to face — OR use that time to get feedback on more pages.

You get free membership in our Membership Group where you can join Ask Me Anything sessions with Jennie Nash, join live working sessions led by our coaches and special guests, and connect with other writers who could be perfect beta-readers for your work.

The outcome?

You will produce a rough draft of a book that is more like a 5th or 6th draft because you've had editorial input, accountability, and emotional support as you go.

You will actually finish this time — no excuses.

* This timeframe is designed for a book that will be approximately 250 manuscript pages (an average length).

Invest in your success

The Manuscript Accelerator program is tailored exactly for you from start to finish. You don't have to read anyone else's work-in-progress at a workshop, wait for your time to share at your writing group, or slog through a video series meant for the masses.

Big investments are always scary, but we do everything we can to ensure you know the program inside and out before you invest in it, including:

Invite you to fill out a detailed Q&A about your project and your goals

Offer a free 30-min. consultation call before you sign up

Show you feedback samples so you can see exactly what kind of editing and guidance you'll get

Start your program with a 60-min. call with your coach to develop a project plan

READY TO TELL US ABOUT YOUR PROJECT AND YOUR GOALS?

Our writers feel deeply satisfied

Wouldn’t be where I am without Jennie and the AA team — manuscript to an agent in NYC, another project with an agent in LA. Author Accelerator is the best investment I’ve made yet in my writing life.

— Robert Desiderio

LAINEY CAMERON

I’ve been participating in an online pitch fest over the weekend and (squeal) I got 5 requests to submit based on this 50 word summary and first 250 words.

Every time someone asks me how I got this far (and I know it’s only one small step in the journey and I have so much work and learning still to do), I say my amazing coach {Kemlo} from Author Accelerator.

HENRIETTE IVANANS

There's NO WAY, without this kind of accountability and feedback, that I could have done this on my own.

LISA MANTERFIELD

The reason I was able to put out two books in quick succession was that I sat on them for YEARS, afraid to take the leap and get them out onto the world. I owe a huge debt of gratitude to you, Lisa, Story Genius, and Author Accelerator for prodding me, albeit lovingly, to the next level. Thank you.

My writing journey would have been stalled on the tarmac if not for Jennie Nash and Author Accelerator. I’m not as far along as I hoped to be, but I’m still at it, and that’s only partly because I’m stubborn—the rest is because of Jennie and Author Accelerator.

— Sonya Meyers

Frequently Asked Questions:

General Questions

+ Why is coaching actually a better option for my book than trying to draft it on my own?

The benefit of coaching is that you will produce a rough draft of a book that is more like a 5th or 6th draft because you've had editorial input, accountability, and emotional support as you go. You will finish with a great draft with which to move forward.

+ What if I'm currently a member of Author Accelerator?

There are a few options for you if you're a current member. You can sign up for Manuscript Accelerator with the introductory price and your coach will tailor your 6 months to what you need (so maybe you only need an additional month of writing, but the remaining time could be spent on revision and preparing to pitch). If you are currently on the $399/month plan, you will be able to continue on that plan until you either finish your manuscript or need to take a break. Once you take a break, you'll need to choose either Manuscript Accelerator or our Basic Book Coaching program to begin again.

+ When can I sign up for Manuscript Accelerator? Do I have to wait until it's available?

Manuscript Accelerator is available at any time. You can sign up whenever you'd like, but note that once you sign up and agree to commit, there’s no backing out! Once you’re in, you’re in!

+ How do I sign up?

The first step is for you to fill out this Q&A. After you fill it out, you'll schedule a consultation call to speak with one of our team members to make sure Manuscript Accelerator is the right program for you and your goals. After your call, we’ll send you the information to register, and you can sign up when you’re ready. Once you’re registered, we’ll pair you with a coach, which usually takes 2-3 business days, and introduce you to them so you can set up a call to talk about your project and devise a plan for your 6-month program.

+ Who will be giving me feedback?

Your work will be reviewed by a coach who has been hand-picked and trained by Jennie Nash. All of our coaches go through four levels of rigorous training and many are published authors themselves. We work hard to pair you with the right coach for you and your project, based on a range of factors, editorial and personal. To learn more about our coaches, click here.

+ I just completed Blueprint for a Book and/or Story Genius – is this right for me?

It's actually exactly what we would recommend you do next! You've set yourself up by nailing down the foundation of your novel, now you can write forward with confidence by having the support and guidance of a book coach.

+ Can I work with a Story Genius-trained coach? And can I use the Story Genius method in this program?

Of course! Story Genius is HARD and it's a tool like everything else. If you like it and it works for you, we can absolutely accomodate you in that regard. But if you're open to trying other methods, your coach will gladly give you other exercises and guidance on how to branch out from Story Genius.

If you are interested in using the Story Genius method to write your book, but have not completed our Story Genius workshop, we ask that you do so before coming into Manuscript Accelerator. Find out when our next workshop is being held HERE!

Program-Specific Questions

+ What's involved in the planning session?

First, there will be a system for learning about your writing habits, your page-count goals, where you tend to fall down over time as you work toward your goal, what you are afraid of in the process, etc. You'll fill that out before you get on the phone with your coach for the planning session.

From there, your coach will help you develop your 6-month plan. Note that your 6-month plan may evolve as your work does. Each week your coach will tell you what they want to see next. That may include revisions of previous materials.

+ How many pages a week am I committing to?

What's great about this program is that you can work with your coach and create a writing schedule that works best for both of you. Twenty pages a week is a guideline, but that might mean 10 new pages and 10 revised. Or, it might mean 12 new pages one week, 6 the next, and 25 the next. It's a more fluid program than anything else. The only caveat is that you and your coach need to plan this together. You can't dump 40+ pages on your coach without warning.

PLEASE NOTE: If you are looking to submit more than 20 pages a week, please mention that on your consultation call with a member of our management team so that we can be sure to match you with a coach who can handle a high capacity.

+ Do I get more than one email exchange with my coach each week?

Yes! That's one of the major benefits of this program. You are allowed to have more back and forth with your coach (of course, within reason) as well as phone or video-conference conversations each month.

+ What if I don't know the genre of my book?

Your coach will absolutely help you with that. There are lessons/exercises they will have you do that will narrow in on what your actual genre is.

+ What is the difference between Manuscript Accelerator and the Basic Book Coaching program?

The difference between our Basic Book Coaching program and Manuscript Accelerator is more than the page guidelines (10 pages a week and 20 pages a week, respectively), but we'll speak to those first. The page guidelines are caps^ on how many pages you CAN send, but they're not requirements that you HAVE to meet. You could do Manuscript Accelerator and submit fewer than 20 pages a week, while always having the option of submitting more pages if you find yourself in a really productive week. You could also send in brainstorming ideas, questions, planning documents – whatever you wanted to discuss with your coach. With Basic Book Coaching, you're limited to sending in just 10 pages or fewer, with the option to send in additional pages, at a separate cost.

Manuscript Accelerator also offers the guided project-management aspect of writing your book – specific next-step guidance from your coach, a progress-tracking rubric to make sure you're meeting your goals, and the hard, six-month timeline – as well as monthly calls with your coach to hash out things over the phone. Basic Book Coaching doesn't include any of that, nor does it have a six-month commitment – you pay for the coaching on a month-to-month basis for however long you need.

^If you are looking to submit more than 20 pages a week, please mention that on your consultation call with a member of our management team so that we can be sure to match you with a coach who can handle a high capacity.

+ How is this different from your previous $399/month and $1,999/month plans?

This program offers much more than our previous month-by-month program, which has no phone or video-conferencing support, no ability to customize the program to suit your schedule or your output, no accommodation for vacations or emergencies and no promise to yourself that you are in it for the long haul.

Billing-Related Questions

+ Why is there a 6-month commitment?

Through extensive work with many different writers, Jennie Nash discovered that six months is the right amount of time for a writer to draft a solid rough draft through coaching. It's a sizable amount of time to commit to, but six months is a lot less time than spending years on a book that doesn't get finished.

+What does "6 months" really mean? How do you calculate the start and stop dates for my program?

Your program begins the day you register and pay for the program – whether that's your first monthly installment or the full cost upfront. Your program will be active until six months beyond that date. For example, if you were to sign up on Jan. 1, your program would be active until July 1. If you were to sign up on Jan. 20, your program would be active until July 20.

+ Can I take a break while I'm in the program?

We've found that most writers who take a lengthy break from the program tend to justify not returning for one reason or another. We don't want you to fall into that trap. So while you may skip a submission or two, or find a way to work around your schedule, you may not take a break while you're in the program. Sometimes our coaches need scheduled vacation time, and we have backup plans and alternative assignments during those brief occurences so that you can keep going strong.

+ I'm currently in or interested in the Basic Book Coaching program. Can I upgrade to Manuscript Accelerator at any time?

PLEASE NOTE: We cannot guarantee that you will be able to stay with your assigned coach if you switch programs. That will depend on the coach's availability at the time of transition. If we need to match you with a new coach, we will be able to do so within one business week.

+ This sounds great, but it's not in my budget. Do you have another option?

We do! We have our Basic Book Coaching program, which is $199/month. However, it does NOT include all the benefits of Manuscript Accelerator. It's essentially one round of feedback and one email exchange with your coach a week. Some writers may find this to be sufficient for them and their writing life.

+ What's your refund policy?

We offer a 30-day cancellation window. This means that within the first 30 days, you can cancel your participation in our Manuscript Accelerator program.

If you’ve paid upfront, you’ll receive a prorated refund (we will retain the cost of the first month and a $300 admin fee).
If you have chosen to pay in monthly installments, you will be released from your payment commitment for the remaining 5 months, however, we will retain the cost of the first month and a $300 admin fee that will be charged to your account upon confirmation of cancellation.

PLEASE BE ABSOLUTELY SURE THIS IS THE RIGHT PROGRAM FOR YOU BEFORE YOU COMMIT!

We invest a lot of time and resources in your success even before you start. We do everything we can to ensure that this program is right for you, including a free 30-minute consultation to talk through the program logistics, robust FAQs that address key aspects of the program, and a team approach to evaluating your application materials so we can hand-match you with a coach we believe can best help you meet your goals.

We expect you to bring the same level of commitment to this work. We have found that the biggest reason writers do not finish their manuscripts is because they fail to show up for themselves -- there is always a reason or an excuse for why they can’t commit. Our goal is to help you finish, which is why this program is structured the way it is. It’s very intentional. That’s why we do not honor membership cancellations after the first 30 days.

PLEASE BE ABSOLUTELY SURE THIS IS THE RIGHT PROGRAM FOR YOU BEFORE YOU COMMIT!